Amigo de Dios & Other Things

There are plenty of cultural cues to follow here and while I catch some of them I also forget some of them. Last Monday while Maria, Daniel and I were at their guitar lessons we were served coffee and cookies. As I finished my cup of coffee Maria sat down beside me and whispered, “Dad it’s not polite to drink all of your coffee. It says that they did not serve you enough. You should have left some in the bottom of the cup.” Good point, thanks Maria - but what should I do? Then the answer was clear, the second cup that hadn’t been touched. So at the appropriate time we spooned some of that coffee into my cup and saved the day. The things we do to meet cultural norms.

We have come to realize that we are very simple people who have a very great God. We were reminded of that last week when a student referred to Diana as “mujer de Dios” (woman of God) and a teacher called me “amigo de Dios” (friend of God). What did we do to receive such compliments? I’m not sure, but I am certain that it had far more to do with His penetrating power in their hearts than it had to do with us. What a relief, what a freedom, what a God!

The July 2nd election between Lopez Obrador (Democratic Revolution Party) and Felipe Calderon (National Action Party) was the closest Presidential election in Mexican history. Of the 41 million votes cast Calderon won by 244,000 votes or less than 0.6 percent. Obrador claims that Calderon’s party stole the election by buying, bribing and intimidating voters. He is calling for a full recount and for millions to take to the streets in demonstration. At the moment the decision is in the hands of seven judges who must constitutionally make a decision by September 6th. According to the Houston Chronicler, “The judges…face three choices: declaring a winner, ordering a recount, or annulling the vote. Each could have grave consequences.…If the judges confirm Calderon won the July 2 election, Lopez Obrador is likely to reject the ruling and stage massive protests.…If they order a recount, they risk weakening a law designed to combat fraud by prohibiting ballot boxes from being opened unless there is evidence of irregularities.…If they annul the elections, they will leave Mexico without a president-elect for more than a year, threatening the country's stability.” I have a feeling that 1 Timothy 2:1-2 might come in handy here.

You know that we live in a city right? It’s a city of a million people with lots of concrete, traffic, and vendors. So you can imagine my surprise when I turned the corner yesterday and there were two huge cows meandering down the street as though they were on the way to pasture. I’ve seen horses grazing on these same streets and people riding donkeys but this was a new one. What next?

Is Someone Out There?

If at all possible Saturday is a lazy day for us. We try to catch up on the sleep we lost the previous week and generally have a late breakfast. It is often complete with muffins, tea, and classical music. (Sounds a bit more English than Mexican don’t you think?) Afterwards we read a chapter in a biography; currently it’s the story of John Williams. Williams was one of the first missionaries to the South Pacific Islands including: Rarotonga, Raiatea, Tahiti and Fiji.

On an exploration Williams came upon a remote island. As far as he knew, no missionary of any race had ever visited it. “As they neared the shore of the island, several canoes approached the ship. One of the paddlers stood up and shouted, ‘We are sons of the Word. We are waiting for a ship of God to bring us some workers of religion. Are you such a ship?” As it turned out Christian natives from another island had become lost at sea and had drifted to this remote island where they shared the Gospel. Now the islanders were waiting in anticipation for someone to come who could share more of God’s Word.

These kinds of stories set me to thinking. Do you think it could be possible that there are actually people today who are waiting in anticipation for someone to bring them God’s Word? Is it possible that today in Mexico there is an individual, a neighborhood, a village, or a town who is asking God to send someone? Why don’t we ask Him to prepare His vessel? Maybe His choice for this task is not ME but another Mexican, or a missionary from a different organization, or someone who is yet to trust Christ or YOU!

On a different note, you may be interested to know that while many of you are enduring a heat wave, it’s spring-like weather here. As a matter of fact we wore sweaters to school today and still found ourselves cold. That seems ironic to me since we are so much further south. Cuernavaca is known as the city of eternal spring and with good reason. I’m sure the altitude of around 6500 feet is a huge factor.

What About..........?

Thanks to all of you who take the time from your busy lives to read our journal. It's fun to keep you up to date as well as to hear your comments. After we posted the pictures last week, one of you wrote and asked a number of questions that are probably of interest to others. So we decided to take this entry to answer those questions and throw in a few of our own.

What about the volcano - can you see it? We sure can and the view is spectacular from our bedroom window and our balcony in the mornings.
What kind of puppy is it? A poodle. Many people have dogs here and there are lots of poodles.
Who named her? Daniel researched a number of names for us and we picked from the choices he found. Chelsea is one of the top twenty names for girl dogs. It also happens to be the name of a professional soccer club in England.
Did you follow the World Cup? Yes, it was fun to be in a country during the World Cup where soccer is a big part of national life. I found myself bonding with people here as we watched the Mexico vs. Angola game around a television in the supermarket. Many of them were employees. Speaking of the World Cup, Daniel won a fantasy league competition during the Cup against some very good players.
How is Jodi? She is becoming a part of our family and is a huge blessing to us. Her life is mostly wrapped up with our children and homeschooling. She has made some friends here and is able to get out for an adventure from time to time.
What is a day like for her? Jodi is up around 6:30 for family breakfast and spends the morning in school. After she makes lunch, it’s more school. Late afternoons and evenings are spent playing games, reading and doing things on the computer. We recognize the six month sacrifice she is making in order to give us a good language start.
Does she have a web-site as well? Jodi has a blog entitled “La Gringa – For Now”. You can catch up with her at http://jodith.blogspot.com/
How is school going? It’s fun, it’s hard, it’s slow, it’s exciting, it’s humiliating.
Who among you speaks the most Spanish? Diana is way ahead. She speaks like a five year old and I speak like a two year old.
Where do you "attend" church? We attend the Iglesia Biblica El Renuevo on Sunday mornings. It meets in an old hotel from 11:00-1:00. Lorenzo Servin is the Pastor. He and his wife have five children and have been very encouraging and supportive to us. The service is in Spanish but there are a good number there who also speak English.
How many scorpions have you found in or around your house? We are at fourteen and hopefully that is the end although I’m not holding my breath.
What has happened lately that is exciting? A church in Vermont gave us a very generous offering from their VBS. It will go toward the purchase of tracts and gospels among other things. Mexico is a paradise for giving the gospel by literature.
Do you miss us? YES! It takes us by surprise at times – when singing a familar hymn in Spanish, when we think about what is going on at home without us, and when things are very different and overwhelming.



Pastor Lorenzo Sevin and family.

Welcome To Our World: A Photo Journal

A quiet spot for a cup of Cafe o Te after school.

It's called "La Manchita" and has a Don Quixote theme.

The local flower shop with bunches at $2.50

The neighborhood Catholic church.

Diana shopping at the bakery which we do quite a lot.

After years of waiting our children finally have a puppy - Chelsea.

The 7-11 our corner store.

This store takes convenience shopping to a whole new level.

These young ladies make it worth a second look don't you think?

The Victorious Life

The countries and cultures of the world all seem romantic - until you see them up close and personal. Then you’re struck with some of the ugly, unromantic truth. This is especially true in the realm of spiritual realities. One of our tasks here in Mexico is to heighten your awareness to things as they really are. While this can paint a discouraging picture at times, it is also a good reminder of the ultimate spiritual reality. Christ is victorious and our life in Him is a victorious life! This truth gripped me as a young man, buoyed me in recent years and has followed me to Mexico.

Indulge me in summarizing some of these truths by quoting from A.E. Richardson’s book How to Live the Victorious Life:

* “The Victorious Life is simply a life fully surrendered to God, with Christ dwelling within and in complete control – a life in which the only desire is to bring glory to Jesus Christ.”
* “Christ is to be more than an example – He is our life…although no harm, but only good, can come from attempting to imitate the Lord Jesus, failure is certain to be the result. Good is always the enemy of the ‘best’.”
* “The Victorious Life is a gift and is not to be secured by any struggling or striving on our part. It is not a thing to be attained to by long and laborious effort. It is not a thing we can reach by growing more and more like Christ…It is not a question of re-conversion, it is just a question of recognizing the indwelling Christ as Master in His own house – my heart.”
* “Every Christian has to decide whether he will be wholly consecrated to God, or whether he will remain content to live the Christian life on a low level – which is always a powerless one and a perilous one.”
* “This victory is secured from moment to moment by a moment by moment faith. There is constant victory for the believer so long as he trusts Christ entirely – and only so long.”
* “When the Holy Spirit of Christ dwells in the heart, sin is abhorrent, and a longing for forgiveness always accompanies confession.”
* “Blaze it out in letters of fire, that Christ can and will save us from the power of sin every day and every hour from our struggling, striving, and agonizing.”
* “Surrender is just turning over to God all that we are and have, for Him to do with us whatever he wishes…It is not our surrender that gives us the victory. It is not even our faith! It is CHRIST HIMSELF – the Faithful One.

We are often inclined to think that we can have victory in our own strength, or at least do a little but He is preeminent when He is living through me, not when I am living for Him. Galatians 3:1-3 reminds us, “You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?” It is the supremacy and sufficiency of Jesus Christ in our lives that is the victory.